Apparatus for burning combustible products in exhaust gases and removing fly ash therefrom



Jan. 13, 1970 G. H. FLOWERS, JR 3,489,109

APPARATUS FOR BURNING COMBUSTIBLE PRODUCTS IN EXHAUST GASES AND REMOVINGFLY ASH THEREFROM Filed July 9, 1968 s Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS1970 G. H. FLOWERS, JR 3,489,109

APPARATUS FOR BURNING COMBUSTIBLE PRODUCTS IN EXHAUST GASES AND REMOVINGFLY ASH THEREFROM Filed July 9, 1968 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTGF/E/EYS Jan.13, 1970 s. H. FLOWERS. JR 3,489,109

APPARATUS FOR BURNING COMBUSTIBLE PRODUCTS IN EXHAUST GASES AND REMOVINGFLY ASH THEREFROM Filed July 9, 1968 L5 Sheets-Sheet 5 A'ITORNEYS UnitedStates Patent 3,489,109 APPARATUS FOR BURNING COMBUSTIBLE PROD- UCTS INEXHAUST GASES AND REMOVING FLY ASH THEREFROM George H. Flowers, Jr.,Richmond, Va., assignor to Waste Combustion Corporation, Mechanicsville,Va., a corporation of Virginia Filed July 9, 1968, Ser. No. 743,548 Int.Cl. F23g /00; F23j 15/00; F23m 7/00 US. Cl. 110-18 17 Claims ABSTRACT OFTHE DISCLOSURE An incinerator for burning in large volume all types ofrubbish or waste material, the exhaust gases from the main combustionzone being further subjected to another burning zone insuring completecombustion by combustion of any combustible products remaining in theexhaust gases and to a zone removing fly ash from the exhaust gasesthereby reducing air pollution to a minimum. The incinerator utilizes anapparatus for combustion of combustible products in the exhaust gases,the apparatus also removing the fly ash by discriminately directing theexhaust gases so that fly ash is separated therefrom. Forced air for themain combustion zone of the incinerator is supplied through holes in thecasing member, the holes being capable of being cleaned from theexterior of the incinerator.

The present invention relates to an incinerator of the type used inburning large volumes of rubbish or waste material from commercialestablishments, apartment houses, and the like. More particularly, thepresent invention is an improvement of the incinerator disclosed in mycopending application Ser. No. 613,006 filed J an. 31, 1967, now PatentNo. 3,403,645.

The problem of air pollution has become more apparent in recent years inareas of high concentration of population due to increased disposal ofcombustible waste material by burning. Heretofore there has been littlemunicipal control of burning and consequently no concern was taken overthe amount of smoke produced, the odor, or the fly ash distributed intothe atmosphere. Recent regulations and laws in most municipalitiescontrolling air pollution have resulted in continued efforts to improveincinerator designs and operation and one such unit is disclosed in myaforesaid application Ser. No. 613,006 which subjects exhaust gas to aburning zone. The present invention not only eflectively burns all ofthe combustible products of the exhaust gases but it also effectivelyremoves fly ash from the exhaust gases so that the gases ultimatelydischarged to atmosphere are smokeless, odorless and substantiallywithout fly ash.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved apparatusfor burning combustible products of exhaust gases received from acombustion zone as well as removing fly ash from such gases to therebysubstantially reduce the emission of obnoxious and polluting products toatmosphere.

Ancillary to the preceding object, it is a further object of the presentinvention to provide an incinerator utilizing an apparatus for burningcombustible products and removing fly ash from exhaust gases of the maincombustion chamber.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improvedincinerator utilizing a fly ash removal apparatus which includes anenclosed chamber divided into at least two fly ash removal chambers, theexhaust gases being discharged into one of the fly ash removal chambersand then directed in a tortuous path to the 3,489,109 Patented Jan. 13,1970 other fly ash removal chamber before being directed into theexhaust stack.

Another object of the present invention which is ancillary to theimmediately preceding object is to provide a secondary or auxiliaryburning zone for an incinerator, the same being positioned within thefly ash removal apparatus to thereby reduce overall space for such anincinerator and to also provide means whereby the secondary or auxiliaryburning zone may be effectively extended in length.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide animproved incinerator having a main combustion zone utilizing forced air,the air being supplied to the main combustion zone through holesprovided in the wall of the casing member for the incinerator, the holesbeing capable of cleaning from the exterior of the incinerator evenwhile the incinerator is in operation.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide anincinerator which is generally annular in shape and which has an openend adapted to be closed by a novel door structure which permitsairtight sealing.

Ancillary to the preceding object, the improved door structure which maybe opened to permit ash removal or loading with large objects, alsoincludes a smaller loading door for small objects.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention willappear more fully in the following specification, claims and drawings inwhich:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view, partly in section, of theincinerator of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged perspective view partly broken away andillustrating the apparatus for removing fly ash from exhaust gases aswell as burning combustible products in exhaust gases;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary view taken substantially on the line 3-3 ofFIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 44 of FIGURE 1and disclosing the removable manifold which permits cleaning of theairholes for the main combustion chamber from the exterior of theincinerator;

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of the incinerator andillustrating the improved balanced door structure of the same;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view of the pivot meansfor the hinge member of the door structure;

FIGURE 7 is a sectional view taken on line 77 of FIGURE 5 andillustrating the pivot means between the hinge member and the doormember of the door structure; and

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view of a typical locking latch for latchingthe door member in sealing relationship to the casing member.

Referring now to the drawings wherein like characters or referencenumerals representing like or similar parts, the incinerator of thepresent invention is generally designated by the reference numeral 10.In more detail, the incinerator includes an annular casing member 12which is preferably cylindrical and which has a horizontal axis. Thecasing member 12 has a closed end 14 and an open end closed by a doorstructure generally designated at 16. The casing member 12, includingits domeshaped end 14, is made up of an outer metallic shell 18 and arefractory liner 20 (FIGURE 4), the refractory liner including blockinsulation 22 next to the inner surface of the shell. A door member 24of the door structure 16 is similarly constructed in that it has anouter metallic shell with a refractory lining.

Referring now to FIGURES 1 and 4, the casing member 12 is provided alongeach side of the same adjacent its lower portion with a plurality ofhorizontally spaced and horizontally extending holes 26 which extendthrough the metallic shell 18 and refractory liner 20. The exterio ofthe holes 26 is covered by an elongated manifold member 28 detachablysupported on the casing 12 by straps 30 bolted as indicated at 32. Asuitable asbestos gasket, or the like, may be provided between themanifold and the exterior of the shell to prevent leakage of air toatmosphere. One end (not shown) of the manifold 28 is closed whereas theother end 34 (FIGURE is provided with a hole 36 which receives the endof a flexible air supply pipe 38 extending from a plenum box 40 housinga blower (not shown). Since the plenum box 40 is substantially similarto that shown and described in my aforementioned application Ser. No.613,006, a further description of the plenum box is not believednecessary herein but the subject matter of that application pertinentthereto is incorporated by reference. It will suffice to say that airunder pressure flows through the pipe 38 into the manifold from which itis delivered in high speed jet streams through the holes 26 to theinterior of the main combustion chamber of the incinerator 10.

As may be the case where rubbish or the like is burned in theincinerator, debris might eventually clog the holes 26 although the airpressure normally clears the same. Should any of the holes 26 becomeclogged, it is easy to remedy as the manifold cover member 28 may beremoved and the holes 26 cleared by insertion of a pin therethrough.Positioning of the manifold member 28 exteriorly of the casing member 12has an added advantage in that the incinerator does not have to be shutdown to clean out the holes.

If desired, the main combustion chamber of the incinerator may beprovided with a pressure burner 42 for igniting the waste materialwithin the combustion chamber. The pressure burner 42 may be either aburner utilizing oil or a gas burner utilizing natural or propane gas orthe like. Air may be supplied to the burner by a pipe 44 also extendingfrom the plenum chamber 40.

The door member 24 of door structure 16 is complementary in size andshape to the open end of the casing member 12. Such door member 24 onlarge incinerators oftentimes weighs in the order of 3 /2 tons and aredifficult to hang and operate. Consequently, the door structure 16 dueto the heavy weight of the door member 24 as well as due to the annularshape of the door member must be provided with means making it easilyhandled by a. single person and yet capable of providing an airtightseal about the open end of the casing member 12. In order to accomplishsuch results, the door structure 16 is provided with an enlargedU-shaped hinge member 46 having a base portion 48 and a pair of spacedhorizontally extending legs 50 and 52. The U-shaped hinge member 46 ismade of a box or angle iron construction in cross section and is pivotedon a vertical axis adjacent the edge of its base member 48, the axisbeing generally tangent to the periphery of the casing member 12. Inmore detail, a plate member 54 welded to the exterior peripheral surfaceof the casing 12 adjacent the open end of the same and further braced bygussets 56 supports a pair of vertically spaced brackets 58. Thebrackets 58 (FIGURE 6) support oppositely disposed vertically alignedbearings 60 which receive the opposite ends 62 of a pivot rod 64 fixedlysecured to the base portion 48 of hinge member 46. Since the pivot axisof the hinge member 46 is vertical, it takes very little force to pivotthe hinge member.

The door member 24 is pivotally supported on the ends of the legs 50 and52 on an axis which is parallel to the vertical pivot axis of the baseportion of the hinge member. This last mentioned pivot axis for pivotingthe door member 24 relative to the hinge member 46 is in a planeextending through the center line of the door member so that the weightof the door member is evenly distributed or balanced on both sides ofits pivot axis. In more detail, the door member 24 is provided with apair of vertically spaced brackets 66 each supporting a bearing 68; onebearing 68 being vertically aligned with the other bearing. The ends ofthe legs 50 and 52 each have a pin member 70 fixedly attached theretoand extending outwardly therefrom and received in the upper and lowerbearings 68.

Locking latches 72 are spaced peripherally around the door member 24 sothat when the door member is moved to its closed position it can bebrought firmly and evenly into sealing engagement with the edge of thecasing member 12. Referring to FIGURE 8, one of such locking latches isdisclosed. The locking latch 72 includes a U- shaped member 74 pivotallysupported at 78 from a bracket 80 welded to the shell 18 of the casingmember 12. An arm 82 welded to the door member 24 is arranged to fitbetween the bifurcated legs of the U-shaped member 74 and a tighteningscrew 84 carried by the base of the U-shaped member is arranged to abutthe arm 82 and force the door member into uniform tight sealingengagement. Of course, an asbestos gasket or the like may be positionedbetween the door member and the edge of the casing member. Since two ofthe locking latches 72 will be positioned behind the base portion of thehinge member 46, access holes 86 are provided in the hinge member. Ahandle 88 is provided on the periphery of the door member 24 so that thedoor structure may be swung openly to provide clear access to theinterior of the combuston chamber when it is desired to either load thecombustion chamber with large articles or to remove ash therefrom.

Door member 24 is provided with a smaller feed door hingedly secured tothe main door member as indicated at 102. The feed door is provided witha locking device 72' similar to that previously described. When it isdesired to load the incinerator with small combustible articles, it ismerely necessary to operate the smaller feed door 100.

Referring now to FIGURES l, 2 and 3, it will be noted that theincinerator 10 is provided on the upper portion thereof with a fly ashremoval apparatus generally designated at 104. The fly ash removalapparatus includes a generally annular casing member 106 welded to thetop of the shell 18 of the casing member 12, the casing member 106having a dome-shaped cover 108 which provides an enclosed chamber C.Suitable refractory material is provided on the interior of the casingmember 106. A baflle Wall member 110 is provided within the chamber C,the wall member having a free end 112 spaced from the top cover 108. Thewall member 110 divides the chamber C into two fly ash removal chambersD and E having communication with each other over the top of the wallmember 110. A stack 114 for discharging exhaust gases to atmosphereextends through the cover 108 of casing member 104 and terminates inchamber E with its lower end 116, which provides an inlet opening forexhaust gases, terminating well below the upper end 112 of baflle member110.

A conduit 118 communicating at its lower end with an opening 120 in thecasing member 12 extends upwardly in chamber E, the conduit 118communicating with a transition conduit 122. The transition conduit,which may be refractory lined as may be the conduit 118, issubstantially similar to the transition conduit described in myaforementioned application Ser. No. 613,006. As shown in drawings, thetransition conduit 122 extends through the wall 110 and terminates inthe fly ash collection chember D with its discharge opening 124 positioned well below the free end 112 of wall 110 and facing away from thewall 110. Transition conduit 112 is provided with an arcuate shaped wall126 which extends from the closed end of the transition conduit andterminates in an opening 128 immediately adjacent the discharge opening124. A pipe 130 from the plenum box 40 supplies air under pressure totheconduit formed by the wall 126, the conduit segregating the air fromexhaust gases in the transition conduit until the air is discharged fromthe opening 128.

Transition conduit 122 is provided with a pressure burner 132 having anozzle for directing a blast of flame parallel to the axis of thetransition conduit, the flame burning the combustible waste products ofthe exhaust gases passing through the transition conduit from thepassage defined by the conduit 118. As the hot gases are discharged fromthe discharge opening 124 of the transition conduit, they will engagethe air being discharged through the opening 128, this air having beenheated. If there are still combustible waste products in the exhaustgases, they will be burned as the air assists in supporting combustion.By having air discharge from the opening 128, the burning zone of thetransition conduit is effectively lengthened thus permiting morecomplete combustion.

The exhaust gases being discharged from the discharge opening 124 aredirected against the Wall of the casing member 106 within the fly ashcollection chamber D and then are directed upwardly and back over thetop edge of the free end 112 of wall 110 and then downwardly into thefly ash collection chamber E. The exhaust gases 'must then again changetheir direction to flow upwardly through the inlet opening 116 and thenout of the stack. Since the direction of the exhaust gases is abruptlychanged in the first fly ash collection chamber D, minute particles offly ash will drop therefrom to the floor of chamber D. If any fly ashremains in the exhaust gases as they are directed over the free end 112of the wall 110, the fly ash particles will separate from the exhaustgases as it changes direction again to go upwardly out of the stack 114.

Chambers D and E may be periodically easily cleaned of accumulations offly ash as a pair of doors 134 and 136 are provided on the casing member106 adjacent the lower end thereof and on opposite sides of the same andof the baflle wall 110. The doors 134 and 136 may be hinged and providedwith handles and a refractory liner.

While the fly ash removal apparatus 104, including the transistorconduit, have been described in connection with an incinerator, it willbe appreciated by those skilled in the art, that such apparatus could beused with any buming device discharging exhaust gases, such as afurnace, heater or the like.

The objects and advantages of the present invention having been fullyand effectively accomplished by the incinerator described above andillustrated in the drawings. It will be realized that various changesmay be made to the specific embodiments shown and described withoutdeparting from the principles and spirit of the present invention.

Therefore the terminology used throughout the specification is for thepurpose of description and not limitation, the scope of the inventionbeing described in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An incinerator for disposing of waste material comprising:

a casing member defining a main combustion chamber;

a passageway through said casing member for discharging exhaust gasesfrom said main combustion chamber;

a transition conduit communicating with said passageway for receivingexhaust gases therefrom, said transition conduit having a dischargeopening adjacent one end;

a pressure burner for effecting a burning zone in said transitionconduit to burn waste products in the exhaust gases;

a second casing member defining a fly ash collection zone;

baffle means within said second casing member and dividing said secondcasing member into two chambers in communication with each other, in oneof which the discharge opening of said transition conduit is positioned;and

a stack extending into said second casing member and having an inletopening in the other chamber of said casing member.

2. An incinerator as claimed in claim 1 in which said baflle meansincludes a vertically extending wall member having a free end positionedabove a discharge opening of said transition conduit and the inletopening of said stack whereby gases from discharge opening of saidtransition conduit must go upwardly and over the free end and downwardlyto the inlet opening of said stack.

3. An incinerator as claimed in claim 2 in which said second casingmember is provided with a fly ash removal door for each of the chamberstherein.

4. An incinerator as claimed in claim 2 in which said transition conduitextends through said wall member.

5. An incinerator as claimed in claim 4 in which said transition conduithas a longitudinal axis inclined upwardly toward its discharge opening.

6. An incinerator as claimed in claim 1 in which said transition conduitincludes means for discharging air adjacent its discharge opening.

7. An apparatus for removing fly ash out of exhaust gases received froma combustion zone comprising:

a casing member defining an enclosed chamber;

a wall member within said casing member and extending across saidchamber to divide the same into at least a pair of fly ash collectionchambers, said wall member having a free end spaced from the interior ofsaid casing member to provide communication between said fly ashcollection chambers;

a conduit for receiving exhaust gases from the combustion zone, saidconduit having a discharge opening within one of said fly ash collectionchambers;

means for burning waste combustible products in the exhaust gases withinsaid conduit;

and a stack extending into said casing, said stack having an inletopening position within the other of said fly ash collection chamberswhereby gases discharged from the outlet opening of said conduit willdischarge fly ash in the one of said fly ash collection chambers andthen will travel over the free end of said wall chamber into the otherof said fly ash collection chambers and discharge any other fly ashtherein before entering the inlet opening of said stick.

8. An apparatus as claimed in claim 7 in which said wall member extendsupwardly from the bottom of said casing member and its free end isspaced from the top of the casing member 29.

9. An apparatus as claimed in claim 8 in which said conduit extendsthrough the other of said fly ash collection chambers but out ofcommunication therewith and then through said wall member, said conduithaving its discharge opening facing away from said wall member in theone of said fly ash collection chambers below the free end of said wallmember, the inlet opening of said stack being positioned below the freeend of said wall member in the other of said fly ash collectionchambers.

10. An apparatus as claimed in claim 9 in which said means for burningwaste combustible products is a burner having a nozzle for effectingburning within said conduit.

11. An apparatus as claimed in claim 10 including means supplying airthrough said conduit but out of contact with exhaust gases therein, saidmeans discharging air adjacent the discharge opening of said conduitwhereby there may be continued burning of waste combustible products inthe exhaust gases within the one of said fly ash collection chambers.

12. An incinerator for disposing waste material comprising:

a casing member defining a combustion chamber for the waste material,said casing member having an outer metallic shell and an innerrefractory liner,

said casing member further having a plurality of horizontally extendingholes through said outer metallic shell and inner refractory linerwhereby the combustion chamber is in communication with the exterior ofsaid casing member, said plurality of holes being spaced from each otheradjacent the lower portion of said casing member;

a manifold member enclosing the outer ends of said plurality of holes;

means for detachably supporting said manifold on the exterior saidcasing member whereby the manifold may be removed for cleaning saidholes from the exterior of the incinerator;

and means for supplying air under pressure to said manifold and throughsaid holes to assist in combustion in said chamber.

13. An incinerator as claimed in claim 12 in which said casing member issubstantially annular and is provided with a horizontal axis saidplurality of holes being horizontally spaced from each other with theiraxes normal to a plane through the horizontal axis of said member.

14. An incinerator as claimed in claim 13 in which said means fordetachably supporting said manifold member includes a plurality ofstraps bolted to said casing member.

15. An incinerator for disposing of waste materials comprising:

an elongated generally annular casing member having a horizontal axisand an unobstructed open end, said casing member defining a combustionchamber; door means for closing the unobstructed open end of said casingmember for making the combustion chamber substantially airtight, saiddoor means including, a U-shaped hinge member having a base portion withspaced legs extending therefrom, said U-shaped hinge member beingpivotally connected to said casing member on an axis adjacent an edge ofsaid base member and generally tangent to the periphery of the casingmember, a door member complementary in shape and size to close the openend of said casing member, said door member being pivotally connected tothe ends of the legs of said U-shaped hinge member on an axis parallelto said first mentioned axis and extending in a plane through a centerline of the door member, and a plurality of locking latches peripherallyspaced about the periphery of said door member and said casing member atits open end for uniformly sealing said door member to said casingmember;

means to supply air under pressure to said combustion zone to assist incombustion;

and means for discharging exhaust gases from said combustion zone.

16. An incinerator as claimed in claim 15 including a feed door smallerin size than said door member, said door member having an openingtherein closed by said feed door and said feed door being pivotallyconnected to said door member along a side of said opening and arrangedto swing between the spaced legs of said U-shaped hinge member.

17 An incinerator as claimed in claim 16 in which said annular casingmember is substantially cylindrical.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS KENNETH W. SPRAGUE, PrimaryExaminer US. Cl. X.R. l19, 165, 173

